SONGS FOR THE DEAF: Desert Rock in Overdrive

this video is sponsored by me not only is listening to vinyl inconvenient it's also expensive so protect your damn records and get the official middleweight record brush at the first link below of the new queens of the stony take a closer look middle eight is overrated so frank what do you got man songs for the death is one of the last great hard rock albums of recent memory it's just bass drums guitar and plain old overdrive it saw queens of the stone age capitalize on their unique position in rock assembling a one-time only star-studded lineup for a loose concept album a drive through the blistering california desert buckle up [Music] after the breakup of his band caius guitarist josh hami would start a band of his own gamma-ray wait that can't be right queens of the stone age largely produced by hami himself their self-titled debut fused art metal with pop pleasures separating this new project from their heavier kai's catalogue going forward the band's lineup would change frequently bringing new minds styles and singers to each new release their sophomore rated r saw a myriad of rock's misfits collaborate on the project most notably kai's bassist nick oliveri helping to both solidify and expand on their hard rock sound during the turn of the millennium the rock genre was going through a sort of revival and queens of the stone age were on the front lines ensuring that people didn't forget about rock and roll for their third album homie would continue to guard the rock flame by summoning a dream team of musicians including josh hammy nick oliveira mark lanigan and dave grohl the legendary dave grohl put the foo fighters on hold to become the full-time drummer of queens of the stone age it was a collaboration that was years in the making songs for the deaf would be the first and last time this lineup would appear on a record together kind of but more on that later with three vocalists and a number of guests joining them for the project homie was worried that the album would sound too all over the place it was bassist oliveri that would push for the album to follow a loose concept initially against it hami thought it would only get in the way of tracks but he eventually agreed that the concept might help pull these sounds together and keep some fluidity between tracks songs for the death puts us in the driver's seat for an expedition through the desert from downtown la to joshua tree inspired by the hot and sweaty root homie would frequent between gigs each track represents a city along the way there's only one problem though the radio is only picking up bizarre stations from the small towns on route which wind up serving as the soundtrack for this journey they feature the band's personal reflections on this remote voyage and as we venture deeper into the desert the further we head into the group's psyche songs on the album end with these mock radio broadcasts poking fun at pretentious radio hosts and mundane mainstream that sound music like everyone else than anyone else the dial first lands on clone radio and our host kip casper introduces the saga it's songs for the deaf you can't even hear it before exploding into the first track millionaire kicks off the album like a massive punch to the face roaring guitars heavy drums and olivery screaming his guts out setting the mood for the rest of the record it's also pretty representative of how you might feel in la traffic [Music] now their definitive single no one knows proved that queens of the stone age could craft a groovy radio-ready tune it features harmy's classic vocal swagger over a bouncy blues riff and cascading drums that build towards a wailing solo the track is vaguely about drug use but no one really knows what we do know is that we're only picking up spanish stations at this leg of the trip but it's all good because they're about to play some more queens of the stone [Music] [Music] featuring a dramatic falsetto from homie first it giveth showcases the group's capacity for colossally heavy instrumentation meshed with menacing melodies continuing with the rock and roll way of life lyrics thematically touch on the tendency for musicians to use drugs as an inspiration in writing songs only to find that their drug dependency eventually takes something away from them as well despite making a whole album about drug use prior it doesn't appear as if the subject matter has changed dramatically for queens they're still drug addicts and they're still [Music] song for the dead plays out like a highlight reel for every member of the band dave grohl's drumming is as hard as nails and has him tearing apart the kit throughout homie and all of aries fuzzed out guitars play off one another in a sort of call and response pattern it's also the first time we hear screaming trees mark lanigan on vocals lending the track his grunge-inspired rasp it concludes with an insane outro and a number of false stops as if refusing to ever die our first moment of release arrives at the sky is fallen and lyrically things are getting more introspective with the harsh realization that holding grudges is just a waste of time the radio concept initially spawned from the band's frustration in not being able to find anything good on the radio and as we pass through chino hills we encounter that very situation the girdle elastic ass with you here in chino hills the last frontier that's where we're at and so queens of the stone age crafted their own stations and as you flip through them you go from death metal to hypnotic blues riffs relentless rock tunes and simple almost beatles ask pop melodies i'm gonna leave you gonna leave you isn't your typical heartbreak song it's about a breakup with heroin uniting relationship issues with drug addiction that theme plays out a little further in the next track our protagonist doesn't drop their addiction but instead maintains a relationship with their drugs he tries changing the station but by now we're in the thick of the desert picking up even stranger radio tunings [Music] [Music] a trance like zz top riff starts off god is in the radio and not only is god in the radio but he's broken the fourth wall in the recording studio there's a section in the track that when played in reverse reveals something more god is coming through the radio or maybe the radio just has our driver reflecting and discovering more about themselves either way it's been a long trip so why not yet another love song love for drugs or an actual lover who knows at this point naturally queens can clue the album on a feminine note this is w-o-m-b the womb and a few my pets learn to listen i'll let you crawl back in so who are the deaf men addicts who continually refuse to change their destructive ways whoever they are this next one's for them a song for the deaf that is for you likely queens's darkest track a song for the deaf is scary heavy and sexy but it doesn't take itself too seriously it manages to capture all three vocalists on the record before the final radio interlude perfectly wraps up this journey you're listening to w-a-n-t the high desert wonder valley favorite radio station it's been a good night dave catching here not saying good night just saying you've arrived at rancho de la luna in joshua tree your home and the radio greets you with the hidden track mosquito song it not only shows off the band's musical complexity more than any other song in the album it acts as a counterbalance to the heaviness of everything we've heard thus far this song speaks for the tired aftermath of the arduous drive you've just endured it references mortality and the lack of meaning in our existence [Music] notice how we're listening to a station named want w-a-n-t a nod to the driver choosing only to hear what they want choosing to ignore their obvious issues and instead driving off into the california desert they are rejecting the idea of being born again from the metaphorical womb songs that fall on deaf ears the fairly loose concept throughout songs for the deaf was meant to mock the very mainstream this album broke the band into it spoke to hami's aversion towards going mainstream and selling out while also saying that radio djs only play trash the title itself pokes fun at radio listeners for their music tastes implying that they must be deaf if that's what they're listening to its major success was ironic in the greatest way possible it was proof that quality rock music could break the mainstream even when it's parroting the system it aims to break after the album's release their lineup would shift yet again groll toured with the group for a short time before going back to fronting the foo fighters homie kicked oliveria out of the band due to accusations of physical abuse and lanigan would hang on for one more album before departing as well the four would ever only work together on one track nearly a decade later but that's a story for another time front to back songs for the deaf remains one of their most aggressive accessible and cohesive records the concept aids in framing the calculated chaos and the tracks are loud as hell i mean how else would the deaf hear if you're like me you love listening to music on vinyl gorgeous full color a chance to interact with your music and high-fidelity sound but over time records can pick up static and dust causing it to sound like well a broken record keep your classics clean and static free with middle with the middle later record brush available for pre-order now using the first link below i'm such an idiot thanks for watching ladies and gents if you enjoyed this video give it a like rating share it with your deaf grandmother and be sure to tell her to subscribe so she never misses an episode follow me on twitter and instagram more middle eight for a chance to win a vinyl copy of songs for the deaf middle late record brushes are an actual thing there's something i've been working on for a little while and if you are a vinyl collector and you don't have one it's actually something i recommend picking up it also helps support the channel so that i can keep bringing you these videos i'm truly blessed to do what i get to do and i love it i honestly love doing this guys anyway before i start crying tell me what's your favorite queens of the stone age record let me know in the comments below but that's it for me again thanks for watching and keep listening

Channel: Middle 8

Views: 148,230

Rating: 4.9712095 out of 5

Keywords: Queens of the Stone Age, qotsa, songs for the deaf, josh homme, them crooked vultures, queens of the stone age rated r, queens of the stone age like clockwork, queens of the stone age live, queens of the stone age full album, queens of the stone age a song for the dead, dave grohl, kyuss, gamma ray, nick oliveri, mark lanegan, queens of the stone age lullabies to paralyze, queens of the stone age era vulgaris, queens of the stone age villains

Id: PgW8UolRrl4

Length: 13min 16sec (796 seconds)

Published: Thu Aug 06 2020

Reddit Comments

[u/coxasaurus]

This is really well done. Each song representing a specific city is a new one for me though. It seems like everytime I see one of these videos they say the theme is "drugs, drugs, drugs" which I think is a little unfair. Its sex, drugs, or having sex on drugs.

[u/astrosdude91]

Middle8 makes fantastic videos